Substantial amounts of energy are used each year by heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) systems, for keeping spaces within homes, offices, buildings, and other enclosures within comfortable temperature ranges. Despite the significant amounts of energy expended, thermal discomfort still remains a major cause of dissatisfaction within building environments, largely due to wide variance in personal preference. In many cases, an indoor space considered to be optimally conditioned might only be satisfying to about 80% of the occupants at a given time. Conventional HVAC systems are incapable of providing the spatial and temporal variation in temperature that would be necessary for each occupant to feel comfortable, focused, and productive in his/her respective environment.
Existing wearable devices for thermal regulation (e.g., clothing) are generally passive in that they do not generate or absorb heat but merely serve to insulate the wearer from the outside temperature. Despite rapid improvements in the field of active wearable devices, including watches, accelerometers, motion sensors, etc., there is a gap in the understanding of wearable devices that actively work to enhance the thermal comfort of the wearer.